John Robbins

Board Chair and Chair of the Resource and Capital Project Committees

Formerly a senior executive in the corporate business world, John now operates a financial planning business, and lives in Wasaga Beach. Determining strategies to relieve the financial pressures for individuals that face barriers in life (caregivers, aging seniors and special needs individuals) is a key focus of his business. Other local volunteer positions include Chair of the SGBCHC Resource Committee, Board Member, Breaking Down Barriers (Chair of Strategic Planning Committee) and Vice Chair of Wasaga Beach Town Accessibility Committee.

David Foster

Vice Chair and Chair of the Governance Committee

David Foster was born in Montreal, raised mainly in Toronto, but then moved to Kingston with his wife, Jill, where he started his banking career. Twenty-seven years, seven communities, three banks and two kids later he is now happily retired. David spent three terms on the council of the Town of Wasaga Beach, his adopted home since 1995. David is past President of the Rotary Club of Collingwood, South Georgian Bay. He has been an active member of Team Diabetes Canada and is currently the Chair of the Wasaga Beach Terry Fox run and a member of a number of Community Boards. David's history of charitable and community involvement were recognized in 2016 with the John Graves Simcoe award.

Diana Vangelisti

Past Chair

Since joining the CHC Board, Diana has brought her enthusiasm to the Resources Committee and to the development of the CHC strategic plan. She was previously the Board Chair and continues to bring strong leadership and dedication to her current role on the Board. Diana is a Retired Registered Professional Planner after a 30-year career in the field of consulting engineering where her work focused on sustainable communities and healthy environments. Diana has served on the Board of Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Region and as a Grant Review Team member for the Ontario Trillium Foundation (Waterloo-Wellington-Dufferin region). After moving to Wasaga Beach over 5 years ago, Diana continues to be engaged in her community and currently serves on the Board of the YMCA of Simcoe Muskoka and the Board of the South Georgian Bay Community Health Centre. She participated on the steering committee for the recently completed Beach Areas 1 and 2 Strategic Plan for the Town of Wasaga Beach. She believes that volunteers are the foundation of strong communities and is privileged to be serving as the Chair of the CHC Board.

Andre Gougeon

Treasurer

Andre graduated in 1972 from the University of British Columbia with a Certified General Accounting (CGA) designation followed by a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) from the Canadian School of Business Management at U of T. He has 50 plus years of financial experience in public practice, government, manufacturing, distribution,consulting, etc. He currently provides personal and small businesses accounting and consulting services to a diversified clientele.

Marie Jaques

Secretary

Marie has been a resident of Wasaga Beach for 10 years. She retired from an admin career in private enterprise, including banking and insurance companies, and she has volunteered on the Planning Committee at Mississauga Hospice. Marie is Past President of New Waves Probus in WB, and she sits on the Friends of the Library Board. She is looking forward to her 2nd 3-year term with the SGBCHC Board.

Mary Ratensperger

Mary is excited to be a part of the SGBCHC team. She admits it will be a learning experience for her, but she brings a wealth of information to the team. She was born in Barrie of a military family and from there she has traveled the world. She trained as a nurse at Kings College Hospital London England and returned to Canada in 1972 with her husband, Richard. She has been in health care for over 40 years and shares that it has always been a privilege.

Mark Winegarden

Mark moved to Wasaga Beach in 2003 as a Paramedic transferring into the Wasaga Beach Station. He was able to enjoy another four years in a profession that he loved being a part of. In 2007, he was injured in the line of duty, which ended his 17 year career. Although the injury has left him permanently disabled, he is still values his ability to contribute to the community. His working life prior to becoming a Paramedic included a wide variety of security and sales related employment opportunities. It is clear that his extensive health background combined with the many other paths he has explored, allow him to contribute to the South Georgian Bay CHC.

Community service has always been important to him and he has enjoyed working as a Lion's member and alongside his wife, Sylvia Bray in her role as a Rotarian. One of his most memorable volunteer experiences was in building a 28 unit affordable housing project in Brampton, Ontario.

His wife Sylvia Bray is a Municipal Councillor in Wasaga Beach and also owns two stores, H.E. Carpet and Flooring and Grandmas Beach Treats. Mark is continually amazed at how she juggles the many things she does. He looks forward to sharing future accomplishments of the CHC with his four children and their families, as they are all residents in the area as well. No Bio would be complete without mentioning his family's love for their furry family members, Bandit and Bella. He estimates 26.8% of their lives are dedicated to these cuddly companions.

Doug Abbott

Born and raised in Toronto, Doug spent most summers working on his uncle’s farm where a passion for agriculture was seeded. He studied agriculture at the University of Guelph and became a dairy farmer in Northern Ontario. Shortly after getting married, before children, he and his wife decided to travel and work in Europe for two years. They now have two children and 3 grandchildren. When he left farming he started a construction business and pursued a career in alpine ski coaching at the same time. During those years he grew his construction business and furthered his coaching career until he was Ontario Women’s Head Coach. Doug's construction business grew until ski coaching was no longer an option and he retired. Besides being president of Village Builders Inc, he spends his leisure time hunting, skiing and enjoying his grandchildren.

Trent Gow

I am a semi-retired professional public policy advisor and advocate. Over a 40 year career, I have had senior executive responsibility in the federal government (Treasury Board Secretariat, Department of Finance, Labour Canada, Bank of Canada), the Canadian banking industry (Bank of Montreal, Chase Manhattan), and the public affairs/ government relations consulting sector (GPC Policy Consultants, TGA Policy Solutions).

As a consultant, I had a primary responsibility for over 500 research, advisory and advocacy mandates in the areas of health policy; public sector governance/ accountability; environmental impact and policy; and financial services legislation/ regulation.

I have considerable personal experience in governance, having served as founding Chair of the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute; Chair of Queen Elizabeth Hospital; Director of the MDS Life Sciences Technology Fund; Director of the Hospice Association of Ontario; Director of Hospice Huronia; Director of The Dorothy Ley Hospice; Chair of the RCMP Pay Council; Vice-Chair of the Ontario Development Corporation; Chair of the Ottawa-Carleton Children's Aid Society; Director of Innovation Ontario; Director, Lumira Capital; and now Director South Georgian Bay Community Health Centre.

I am locally an Advisor to the Advocacy Committee of the Owen Sound and District Chamber of Commerce and an Advisor to Hospice Huronia in Penetanguishene on their residential hospice project and on Board development. Also, a privileged principal participant on the Wise Guys commentary radio show that is broadcast weekly on 97.7 The Beach in South Georgian Bay and monthly on 560 CFOS Owen Sound. As well I prepare and deliver regular Making Waves radio commentaries on the Bayshore Broadcasting Network.

My education background is; M.A. degree in Economics from the University of Toronto, completed Ph.D. comprehensive requirements at the same university in economic theory, monetary economics and labour economics. I am fluent in French as well as English.

Valerie Dickson

Val is currently the General Manager of Leadership Development for the YMCA of Simcoe Muskoka. Prior to this leadership role in partnership with Lakehead University, Valerie spent the last seven years as General Manger of the Wasaga Beach YMCA. Val continues to be invested in promoting volunteerism across the association as chair of the Volunteer Product Group and remains committed as a Trainer Educator for YMCA Provincially. Valerie's commitment to community collaboration has also led to her involvement with the Wasaga Beach Rotary Club and as a second term Board member for Breaking Down Barriers, most recently as the Board Chair."My sense of belonging is rooted in serving my community. I look forward to, and am honoured to be a part of this amazing and dynamic group of directors for the Board of the South Georgia Bay Community Health Centre."

Laura Clemenhagen

Laura Clemenhagen has recently moved back to Ontario after spending 6 years in Vancouver, BC. Laura resides in Collingwood is a chiropractor at Synergy Health and Wellness Centre. She has a passion for helping people achieve optimal health and well being and is eager to continue that work through the SHBCHC Board of Directors.

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Hours of Operation

Monday

9:00am-4:30pm

Tuesday

9:00am-7:30pm

Wednesday

9:00am-4:30pm

Thursday

9:00am-4:30pm

Friday

9:00am-1:00pm

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Events Calendar

Check the Events Calendar regularly for monthly programs offered by the South Georgian Bay Community Health Centre. We are committed to providing high quality services and programs and encourage you to participate!